This article shows a way to add better handling to your early Fairlanes. The sway bars were a dramatic improvement to the handling of this car.
I have owned a 1964 Fairlane for many years. I am one of those guys that "drives" his car. I like it to stop, accelerate, and turn better than stock. I did some things to make the car accelerate faster. I also worked on some brake issues. I was thinking about selling it because it would not go around a corner. A newer Mustang would handle so nice. I had no idea what kind of improvement I could get with some modifications. The first would apply to cornering or drag racing. A Fairlane has rubber isolated springs in these years that allow a lot of movement. My tires were over 1/2" from the front wheel lip but would touch on abuse. Here is a way to eliminate the rubber with the purchase of a couple parts and a little welding.
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This part will be removed since it holds the rubber that isolates the spring from the axle.
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This is to show what is needed. There is a large hole in the spring pad for the rubber. Usually this hole is the size of the head of the bolt you are using. Here is how we fix that little problem. A washer needs to be found to fit the opening of the spring pad. If you do not find the correct one just put the washer on a bolt and spin it in your drill until it is the correct size.
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This is a better picture of the plate and washer. Another plus to this is if you want to shift your axle front or rear a little you can drill your hole off center. I did it to move mine back a little for tire clearance.
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This is it in the car after many hard miles with no problems. I never knew how much of an angle there was on the springs until I did this.
![Image]()
Another picture of the plate. It is simply a steel plate with a washer welded to it. Weld in the center and just grind it smooth. It is only for positioning so the weld strength is not too big a deal.
That is a lot of goofing around for what? If you drag race I think you need to do this. I noticed a very slight improvement in road feel and the tires never touched again.
What is next? In my case I went with a front sway bar. Not too expensive and let me see if I want to keep this car or not. This is one of those 20 minute installs. Everything is right there and in my case not rusted.
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I have heard stories of cracked control arms with larger sway bars. I have kept an eye on mine since it is abused and so far so good. So did it work? This was the biggest single simple mod that had the most bang for the buck. Talk about a different car to drive. People commented on it. I would suggest this one to any one. I think at the time it was not much over $100 and a simple install.
The next installs were the rear sway bar and gas charged shocks. I will show the pictures let you decide. The rear bar is clamped to the axle and requires drilling two holes in the body. A fairly easy install. The rear sway bar was a little disappointing after the front. I do not know what it would be like on it's own and would not put a bigger bar on the rear without doing the front. I have a feeling the car would want to spin around you. Together the bars do help keep the car flatter and more stable.
![Image]()
One thing to be said for sway bars is the car can still have a very soft ride.
I had the only shocks I could find for a 64 Fairlane. My front and rear springs had already been replaced so I was good there. I wanted something more in line with a KYB gas shock. The rear is available since it is the same as a Mustang. Front was not there. For you 62-65 Fairlane guys you need a KYB Dodge D250 1988 2WD front truck shock. There are no studs on the bottom so you need to use bolts. They could be tacked in place to make them easier to install.
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Well now what? I would do the front bar in a heart beat. If you want to retain the mush ride keep the mush shocks. If you want it to feel like a newer car get the gas charged performance shocks. I did not get to try the shocks before the front bar but the improvement in handling was great. Both would be a great improvement in my book. If you do not have the money let the rear bar go till last.
Does it make a difference? Oh yeah!
.
I have owned a 1964 Fairlane for many years. I am one of those guys that "drives" his car. I like it to stop, accelerate, and turn better than stock. I did some things to make the car accelerate faster. I also worked on some brake issues. I was thinking about selling it because it would not go around a corner. A newer Mustang would handle so nice. I had no idea what kind of improvement I could get with some modifications. The first would apply to cornering or drag racing. A Fairlane has rubber isolated springs in these years that allow a lot of movement. My tires were over 1/2" from the front wheel lip but would touch on abuse. Here is a way to eliminate the rubber with the purchase of a couple parts and a little welding.
This part will be removed since it holds the rubber that isolates the spring from the axle.
This is to show what is needed. There is a large hole in the spring pad for the rubber. Usually this hole is the size of the head of the bolt you are using. Here is how we fix that little problem. A washer needs to be found to fit the opening of the spring pad. If you do not find the correct one just put the washer on a bolt and spin it in your drill until it is the correct size.
This is a better picture of the plate and washer. Another plus to this is if you want to shift your axle front or rear a little you can drill your hole off center. I did it to move mine back a little for tire clearance.
This is it in the car after many hard miles with no problems. I never knew how much of an angle there was on the springs until I did this.
Another picture of the plate. It is simply a steel plate with a washer welded to it. Weld in the center and just grind it smooth. It is only for positioning so the weld strength is not too big a deal.
That is a lot of goofing around for what? If you drag race I think you need to do this. I noticed a very slight improvement in road feel and the tires never touched again.
What is next? In my case I went with a front sway bar. Not too expensive and let me see if I want to keep this car or not. This is one of those 20 minute installs. Everything is right there and in my case not rusted.
I have heard stories of cracked control arms with larger sway bars. I have kept an eye on mine since it is abused and so far so good. So did it work? This was the biggest single simple mod that had the most bang for the buck. Talk about a different car to drive. People commented on it. I would suggest this one to any one. I think at the time it was not much over $100 and a simple install.
The next installs were the rear sway bar and gas charged shocks. I will show the pictures let you decide. The rear bar is clamped to the axle and requires drilling two holes in the body. A fairly easy install. The rear sway bar was a little disappointing after the front. I do not know what it would be like on it's own and would not put a bigger bar on the rear without doing the front. I have a feeling the car would want to spin around you. Together the bars do help keep the car flatter and more stable.
One thing to be said for sway bars is the car can still have a very soft ride.
I had the only shocks I could find for a 64 Fairlane. My front and rear springs had already been replaced so I was good there. I wanted something more in line with a KYB gas shock. The rear is available since it is the same as a Mustang. Front was not there. For you 62-65 Fairlane guys you need a KYB Dodge D250 1988 2WD front truck shock. There are no studs on the bottom so you need to use bolts. They could be tacked in place to make them easier to install.
Well now what? I would do the front bar in a heart beat. If you want to retain the mush ride keep the mush shocks. If you want it to feel like a newer car get the gas charged performance shocks. I did not get to try the shocks before the front bar but the improvement in handling was great. Both would be a great improvement in my book. If you do not have the money let the rear bar go till last.
Does it make a difference? Oh yeah!
.
Addco and Quickor make front bars.
